In May 2024, the operator of the kiosk on the ground floor of the building where our chairwoman Claudia Seidensticker also lived set fire to his kiosk. Verena Kensbrock wrote a very detailed article in the Rheinische Post. insightful article (Paywall) about the disaster in Flingern.
But what happened back then?
In the night of May 15-16, 2024, a devastating accident occurred in Düsseldorf-Flingern: At approximately 2:25 a.m., a kiosk on the ground floor of a six-story residential and commercial building on Lichtstraße exploded. The explosion woke residents and set the building ablaze. Four people lost their lives, including the 48-year-old kiosk owner, who was found in the immediate vicinity of the kiosk. Sixteen other people were injured, two of them seriously. The fire department responded with a large contingent of around 100 personnel and rescued several residents from balconies. The fire quickly spread to the first floor, and several cars parked in front of the building also caught fire.
Initial investigations pointed to arson as the cause. Later, police and prosecutors confirmed that the kiosk owner had started the fire himself. He had spilled gasoline in the shop and ignited it, leading to the explosion. The man had previously been faced with the termination of his lease and was said to have mental health issues. He died in the explosion, as did a 55-year-old tenant, an 18-year-old resident of the building, and a 61-year-old woman who succumbed to her severe injuries several weeks after the incident in a specialized clinic. Investigators believe the kiosk owner committed the act out of desperation.
"I thought you had to make it all the way down now, otherwise it's over."
Claudia Seidensticker was also injured and spent three months in a clinic, severely traumatized. She witnessed the events at close range, as she lived on one of the upper floors of the building. Fortunately, she managed to escape via the stairwell and is now on the road to recovery.